Monthly Archives: October 2016

Police in Lakeport have arrested a man they say was a known gang member with a weapon on him. Lakeport police say they were at a bar in Clearlake and saw a gang member, Octavio Martinez who also saw them, putting something in a car and walking away. They say they checked and saw a partially covered Glock handgun. So they arrested Martinez and three of his associates, one of which, police say, got hostile with them. Martinez charged with felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a loaded and concealed firearm by a known suspected criminal street gang member and possession of an unregistered firearm along with ammunition. He was held on $100,000.00 bail. The others on $15,000 each.

A meeting set of Lake County’s Long-Term Recovery Task Force regarding the Clayton Fire. The meeting Wednesday night at 6:00 pm at the Lower Lake Schoolhouse Museum. Lake County’s District 5 Supervisor, Rob Brown, and County Administrative Officer, Carol Huchingson will be there and encourage fire survivors to attend.

A homeless camp has been cleaned up in Lakeport. Police say they’ve been investigating the camp for a couple weeks that sits on a vacant private lake o a side parcel. Police say there were several, separate camp sites put up below the high water mark of Clear Lake and within the public trust doctrine, but they say state or local law doesn’t allow trespassing on private lands of another to access an easement. Police say those there thought they were on state property and had a legal right to camp there. But the landowner didn’t allow such camping, so it was broken up. Last week the camp was cleaned of 940 pounds of garbage and contaminated debris which was between 5 and 30 feet away from the water’s edge of Clear Lake.

One of the state’s worst truancy rates in Lake County schools. The California Attorney General’s Office reports the county had a nearly 32% truancy rate at elementary schools for the 2013-14 school year, Lassen County was first with 38.7 percent. The Lake County Superintendent of Schools says the data was from software only two out of six districts use which skews the results. He did admit however, that truancies are a chronic problem.

A man arrested for a 2015 bank robbery in Clearlake is going to prison. Samuel Campbell got almost six years in prison and another five years of supervision after release. Campbell has also been ordered to pay more than $3,000 to the bank in restitution after he and an unnamed female suspect held up the Bank of the West in Clearlake last year at gunpoint. Campbell was tracked and arrested in Flint, Michigan a year ago. His accomplice due in court in January.

A man from South Carolina’s been arrested for calling 911 – 12 times, reporting the mafia was after him. Ukiah police say the guy was at the Sunrise Inn on South State Street last weekend where calls kept coming into 911 for an unknown reason. Police say the man was acting paranoid and said he thought mafia members were in rooms near him and he could hear them loading guns. Police say they figured out later he was on meth so they arrested him on suspicion of being under the influence of a controlled substance and for violating his probation.

A Northern Calif. State Senator says he doesn’t think legalizing pot is a good idea. Senator Mark McGuire says proposition 64 would take at least 10 years to work because of rampant illegal cultivation, violent crime and environmental damage. He says he favors legalization but he’s voting no on prop 64 because it comes before the state has control of medical cannabis. He says smaller cities and counties, like those in the North Coast will be competing with bigger jurisdictions for grants from the profit fund.

The California Department of Motor Vehicles says they should be fully functional by today after a massive computer failure last week. 3 offices should be running smooth again that officials said they had hoped to have back online Friday. A spokesperson for the DMV says they’re not sure what’s causing problems at those offices. This comes after a failure of multiple hard drives wouldn’t that allow most functions at many of the DMV’s 188 offices. At its peak, the outage hit two-thirds of DMV offices.

A man who got prison time for stabbing two men and killing one of them is going to stay in prison a while. Fred Stillman has been denied parole for a third time. The Chief Deputy District Attorney says Stillman, who got 16 years to life in 1996, was up for parole after saying back then he’d learned his lesson and that his fight with the two men was in protection of his daughter who had a fight at Austin’s Resort. One of the men was stabbed to death, the other had stab wounds to his chest and abdomen and survived. Stillman also accidentally stabbed his daughter in the fight. He was arrested soon after.

A Ukrainian man wanted that iPhone 7 pretty bad. An electronics store was offering the new phone for free to the first five people to change their name legally… to iPhone 7. The 20-year old went for it last week. He says now, that he got his phone, he might actually change his name back to his original name, Olexander Turin, when he has children.

New polling in Calif. shows the marijuana initiative likely to pass and Donald Trump with historically low numbers for Republicans in the state. The poll by the Public Policy Institute of California shows Democrat Hillary Clinton’s lead over Mr. Trump went up 10 points over the last month. With only 28% of likely voters supporting Trump. Senator Barbara Boxer’s seat looks like a clean win already for the California Attorney General Kamala Harris, who’s 22 points ahead of Loretta Sanchez, an Orange County congresswoman. The measures to legalize pot and put a 2 dollar tax on cigarettes also look like strong wins. The poll also shows 50 percent of Republicans have an unfavorable view of their party with 60 percent unhappy with their presidential choices.

Recycled tires are being used to repave some roads in Lake and Calaveras counties that were damaged by wildfire work. Roads heavily damaged by heavy trucks and other equipment while fires were raging and after they were out. Potholes have been filled, but other areas with damaged roads are still that way. So CalRecycle has offered repairs for the battered streets thru their Rubberized Asphalt Concrete (RAC) grant program. The filler made up of mixed and ground-up used tires with asphalt and other materials. The director of CalRecycle says it helps keep waste tires out of landfills and works well for road resurfacing.

It’s a yes for a new location for the juvenile probation camp in Lake County. The Board of Supervisors approved the relocation to Sonoma County with a quick chat on the matter. Nearly $40,000 a month goes to Bar-O Boys Ranch in Del Norte County or $109 a day whether they have any juveniles placed there. It was unanimously approved with one juvenile already placed in the Sonoma County facility.

A ballot measure for residents in Ukiah to fix local roads. On the November 8th ballot voters will decide if the city will get more money to improve roads with a half-cent sales tax. Measure Y will go directly to road repairs, not other projects that are funded by grants. Apparently the state’s not providing local jurisdictions with enough money for maintenance or repairs to streets and the city of Ukiah says there’s not enough money in the general fund to pay for it either. The half-cent sales tax would mean 50 cents from every $100 purchase in the city limits, which is expected to raise as much as $2.5 million a year.

More than $130,000 has been raised for the new Family Medicine Residency Program in Mendocino County. The new program set to start in June 2018 to bring in family medicine doctors who will go for graduate medical training at Ukiah Valley Medical Center. Family Medicine Education for Mendocino County awarded $45,000 to the program that came from the Rural Health Rocks concert. The Mendo Lake Medical Foundation donated $20,000 and Ukiah Valley Medical Center matched those donations for the grand total of $130,000.

More child molestation charges for a former employee of the Boys and Girls Club of Sonoma Valley. 68 year old Paul Kilgore is already in jail on $1 million bail. Now he’s accused of crimes against a third boy, for seven counts. Kilgore was the nonprofit’s athletics director for around ten years before he resigned in 2013. The investigation into the man started last August. Prosecutors say they expect Kilgore to enter a plea at his next court date, next Thursday. He was arrested last month after he was seen with two boys in the hot tub and shower at Parkpoint Health Club in Healdsburg. A member of the club, said to be a local elementary school teacher, told police he overheard Kilgore ask the boys if they were circumcised and if they liked bubble baths.

Power out for residents in Kelseyville after a big rig rollover that also blocked part of Highway 29. It happened near Highway 29 and Kit’s Corner yesterday. The California Highway Patrol reports the truck went off the highway, rolled then hit a power pole, knocking the pole and its wires down. Both lanes of the highway were blocked so traffic had to be diverted from Highway 175 to Red Hills Road. The driver had minor to moderate injuries and P, G & E responded to a small power outage which was restored about 3 and a half hours later.

Wild Turkeys have city leaders in Davis scrambling. The Davis City Council taking a formal vote on what to do about the turkeys roaming the streets of the college town. They’ve approved a wild turkey management plan to trap and relocate the birds. Some of the more aggressive ones may even be killed off. The ordinance also makes it illegal to feed the birds. The police chief says they’ve even been getting calls from folks attacked by turkeys. One man said he was pinned against the wall of a bank by one of them.

It wasn’t long before Fraternity and Sorority parties were back at the University of California, Berkeley. After just a one week suspension, new guidelines have been agreed to so fraternity row is free of sexual violence. There was a voluntary ban agreed to a week ago after two women said they were sexually assaulted at off-campus fraternity houses. Now the Panhellenic Council president says guests have to be greeted at the front door of parties with so called "consent talks". That will focus on what consent means. They are supposed to also encourage "bystander intervention". There also have to be at least three "sober monitors" at every party.

A woman from Ukiah’s busted for an attempted burglary earlier this week. Police say they got a report Tuesday that a man and woman were trying to break into his house through a window. When cops got to the house, with police dog, Thor, they say they saw a woman hiding in bushes. Zimora Martinez of Ukiah was detained, but the man with her got away. The resident of the home said he was gone a few days and when he got back he saw his shed open and his bike gone. He says when he went inside the house, he heard something and saw a man trying to get in. He called 911 after seeing the woman cutting a screen in his bathroom window.

A mistrial’s called in the case of a man who used to live in both San Francisco and Covelo who’s charged with drug dealing. The Mendocino County DA says Manuel Turchan is still charged though, with transporting or attempting to transport non-medical marijuana for purposes of sale and possessing non-medical marijuana for illegal commercial purposes, both felonies. There was a mistrial because the jury was split, with 9 voting for not guilty, but 3 believing he was guilty. It’s all connected to a drug deal gone wrong near Covelo last October. The prosecution is waiting to see what happens in another drug case before deciding to retry.

Possible hiking trails to cover an old landfill in Ukiah if one outdoors group has their way. The Ukiah Valley Trail Group’s applied for a grant to make the old landfill at the end of Vichy Springs Drive in Ukiah a recreational playground. The group’s applied for a Neighborhood Assist grant from State Farm Insurance of $25,000. The money for 40 different projects from the company in an effort to help communities. The grant is voted on by interested residents, this proposal is one of a couple hundred projects under consideration. You can vote up until November 4th at neighborhood assist (dot) com.

A man in Lake County’s under arrest for a crash last month that killed a pedestrian. Police say Robert Hitchcock of Clearlake is responsible for the death of 40 year old Nichole Welborn as he drove while high on meth. Cops say the victim was getting into her car in Lower Lake when he hit her. She was then pinned between Hitchcock’s Ford F-150 and her car. The CHP arrested the guy who’s charged with several crimes including vehicular manslaughter with a special allegation, he had a prior DUI, misdemeanor possession of methamphetamine and driving with a suspended license. He was arraigned Monday and is due back in court Nov. 15th.

A preliminary hearing’s set for next spring for a man accused of starting the Clayton Fire and as reporter Claire Beverly says, there could be as many as 15 others.

Lake Co News reports Damin Pashilk to have his preliminary hearing next April after the DA asked for more time to build the case against him. Pashilk, who is from Clearlake, faces 23 charges related to fires in Clearlake, Clearlake Oaks, Lower Lake and Middletown dating back to July 2015 and continuing through this past August; the Clayton fire, which started two days before he was arrested, destroyed nearly 300 structures including about 200 homes. Pashilk has pleaded not guilty to all charges and remains in the Lake County Jail with $5 million bail.

The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services continues working with Cal Recycle and the Department of Toxic Substances Control to help Clayton Fire-affected homeowners get back on their land and ready to rebuild their homes. Reporter CB with that story…

Cal OES says since two months have passed since the fire, many damaged home sites still need to be cleared and deemed safe before homeowners can rebuild. This includes removal and disposal of household hazardous waste like, gas cans, propane tanks, and asbestos and once those things are cleared then the remaining hazardous ash has to be cleared before the site is returned to the homeowner.

A man from Gualala’s arrested after police say he threatened a Mendocino County Deputy with a shotgun. Reporter CB with the story…

Deputies had gone looking for Jason Lusk Saturday night after getting word he had a stolen weapon with him at a home in Gualala. When they found him in a car along Gualala River Road he ran so they searched the area but didn’t find him. But when they came back to his car a couple hours later Lusk was sitting in the driver’s seat. As a deputy approached the man, they say he jumped out and aimed a shotgun at him. The Deputy ordered him to drop it and after a moment’s hesitation he did and was taken into custody.

City leaders in Clearlake to discuss a vote against a proposition sponsored by the governor for new parole and sentencing provisions. The City Council is considering opposition to Proposition 57, the Public Safety and Rehabilitation Act. The Governor says it’s to reform prisons, by giving inmates a second chance at the same time, saving the state money. Those against the measure say that’s all misleading and it would mean the release of tens of thousands of prisoners too soon which could lead to more crime in communities. The Lake County Law Enforcement Chiefs Association is against it too. The City Council will first meet behind closed doors at their meeting tonight at 5:30 before the regular council meeting at City Hall.

Cal Fire to light up a bunch of pile on the Boggs Mountain Demonstration State Forest. The forest still closed to the public since the Valley fire. During the winter months, Cal Fire says it’s going to clear out fire and drought-induced bark beetle dead trees. They say 99 percent have been destroyed. Cal Fire says over this past year, they’ve been working with forest managers to salvage logging to get rid of standing dead trees to prepare for replanting. So now there’s a bunch of slash piles they have to get rid of. They say they’re hoping to get the forest back to a safe condition so they can reopen to public access, allowing wood cutting, trail access and camping.

The Dept. of Motor Vehicles says it was “perfect storm” of several hard-drive failures that caused a computer outage that effectively stopped work at 70% of their offices this week. The agency’s disaster recovery systems had not been up to date for such a failure during such a short time frame. A spokesperson for the DMV says they have experts working to repair the system and get them online again, but they’ve got no timeframe for when it might be done. They say they were not hacked or even targeted, but they still have not reported why their hard disks all failed at once.

Rapper Coolio in trouble with LA Police for bringing a gun to the airport. The artist, whose real name is Artis Leon Ivey in court yesterday, getting 3 years probation. The DA’s office says he also got 45 days of community service. He was arrested last month after an airport security screener found the weapon in his bag. Back in 2001 he was also convicted for carrying a concealed weapon.

A reservoir in Northern Calif. is polluted with high levels of a natural toxin. The Calif. Dept. of Water Resources has upgraded the San Luis Reservoir level to WARNING, so swimmers won’t go in, and to stay away from dirty water, keep pets and kids away because of a cyanobacteria algal bloom. The warning says residents shouldn’t use the water for cooking and not to drink it. The state agency says any fish caught there should be cleaned with fresh water and shellfish should not be eaten. The reservoir is located around 125 miles southeast of San Francisco.

A couple hundred pumpkins stolen by thieves in New Jersey. The owner of Farms View Roadstand in Wayne, says they could see on surveillance video about $2,000 worth of pumpkins taken by four people who hopped in a van. The farm owner says the van pulled up to the stand three times to steal pumpkins. They’re offering a $1,000 reward leading to an arrest.

An ex county employee in Arkansas locked up for using a county credit card for personal items including formal wear for her dog. Police say Kristi Goss was arrested earlier this week for fraudulent use of a credit card while she worked as an administrative assistant for the Garland County judge’s office. Investigators say she made $200,000 in purchases buying items like a diamond bracelet, Razorbacks tickets, pet insurance and a tuxedo for her dog.

A couple of men busted after police report they crashed a couple’s wedding then wouldn’t leave. Police say Patrick McAllister of Tierra Verde and Joshua Willard of St. Petersburg arrived drunk and didn’t even know the couple. The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office says the two were asked to leave but wouldn’t and that they were shoving guests and even threatened the bride. The two left and went to a bar where they also caused a scene and were eventually arrested on disorderly intoxication and resisting an officer charges.

The world’s first shipment of beer by a self driving truck. Anheuser-Busch reports the tractor-trailer drove more than 120 miles through Colorado. There was a little help though…the company says a professional truck driver was aboard the entire time and made sure things went ok.

The end of the Redwood Credit Union United Way workplace giving campaign means more than $100,000 for the nonprofit. The credit union was giving incentives to employees so they’d donate. The credit union says supporting nonprofits is important to their culture. They raised $105,560 to support United Way of the Wine Country. They say they’ve been supporting the United Way for almost 2 decades and raised more than $1 million so far.

Police in Clearlake say they found a felon they’d been looking for after going out to a domestic disturbance call. Cops say Clarence Hall was arrested after they found a firearm, almost an ounce of meth and more than a pound of pot yesterday. Police say a woman reported multiple incidents of domestic violence with the man the last two weeks, some with a firearm. They say she looked like she had injuries consistent with those claims. Hall was on Post Release Community Supervision when arrested. He’s charged with several crimes including felony domestic violence, felony terroristic threats and felon in possession of a firearm.

A new report shows the state has more cases of sexually transmitted diseases than any other state. The report from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also shows there’s been a spike in Syphilis cases that haven’t been this high since the mid-1990s. Across the country, there were 1.5 million Chlamydia cases last year, 400,000 Gonorrhea cases and 24,000 Syphilis cases, those up 19 percent compared to 2014. The agency says there’s while Calif. was at the top of the list for sexually transmitted diseases, Alaska was the highest on the list. But there’s a smaller population.

An appeal’s been filed against the final environmental impact report for an expansion of a vineyard in Hidden Valley Lake (HVL). The HVL Watershed organization filed the appeal last week against the Lake County Planning Commission which they say mirrors their concerns since the beginning of expansion talk. The group says the report doesn’t totally address impacts to the local watershed, something required by the California Environmental Quality Act. Another planning commission meeting on the expansion of the Wild Diamond Vineyard is scheduled for next month. And the appeal will be heard by the Lake County Board of Supervisors at a future meeting.

Congressman Mike Thompson trying to help out National Guard members who have to pay back some unauthorized bonuses. Thompson’s the Co-Chair of the House Military Veterans Caucus. They’ve sent a letter to the Secretary of the Army asking for an exception, saying it’s wrong to demand a repayment of enlistment bonuses issued in error. Apparently the Secretary of the Army can authorize an exception to repayment requirements under certain circumstances. 2 Republican congressmen and another Democrat along with Thompson, signed the letter.

The Amber Alert called off and an infant from Guerneville found safe. Police say they’ve arrested the boy’s mom, Hannah Ashley, who they say snatched the baby from his grandma earlier this week. The two found in Downieville, yesterday, a tiny town northeast of Yuba City. The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office says a witness reported seeing Ashley’s car after the Amber Alert was issued Monday night. It was found abandoned, but mom and son were seen in a grocery store, by a store clerk. The baby, who was unhurt, was in a duffel bag. Mom charged with suspicion of child abduction and evading police.

The Willits Bypass is officially opening. Caltrans reports there’s currently one way traffic because of a failing culvert, but they’re planning on an on-time grand opening next Thursday at 11 a.m. The failing culvert is on Highway 101 just north of the Bypass project. Officials say they’re hopeful they won’t need traffic control workers on scene before the official opening. There is a public celebration planned for the completion of the current phase of the $300 million project, along with a dedication of the 1.1 mile long viaduct, named after Jesse Pittman, a former CalFire Mendocino unit firefighter and Navy SEAL killed in a chopper crash in Afghanistan.

The Palace Hotel still a thorn in the side of the city of Ukiah. Almost a year after a judge told the city to go after mediation instead of receivership, no agreement’s been reached. The city’s petitioned the court again for a receiver to take over rehabbing the old hotel. It doesn’t mean the owner, Eladia Laines would lose the hotel. It’s been empty since the 1990’s when she purchased it. The building’s been in violation of several public safety codes though, since an inspection in May of 2011. A hearing has been set for Jan. 3rd.

Two new wells in the city of Ukiah could mean as much as 2,000 gallons a minute if needed. The city’s director of water and sewer updated the City Council last week. He was there asking for approval of an order of completion for the two wells: the first is a new well northwest of the Orchard Avenue Bridge, and the other was a replacement for one on Lorraine Street. The council voted unanimously to accept the order.

Christmas tree permits are available at Mendocino National Forest offices after Halloween. Starting next Tuesday, Nov. 1st, $10 permits will be available, continuing thru Dec. 23rd. Permits are first come first served and good for this year only. Trees can be cut down and taken out of the forest thru December 24th. And as part of the Every Kid in a Park initiative, fourth graders can get a free Christmas tree permit with a valid fourth grade pass. For more info on that, visit www.everykidinapark.gov.

A new location for the juvenile rehabilitation program is being considered by the Lake County Board of Supervisors. The program for at risk youth using property in Del Norte County owned by the Bar-O Boys Ranch. But the Chief Probation officer says it’s hard for parents to visit because of the distance, about 270 miles away from Lake County. If it happens it could also save the county some cash. The meeting this morning at 9 at the courthouse.

A case against a woman in Lake County who was charged with fraudulently using the Sheriff’s office bank account has been dismissed. But the Record Bee reports Samantha Angulo is free, but Jeffrey Brain is still in custody. The DA’s office reports Brain’s charged with two counts of grand theft for use of another party’s personal identification and use of an access card. The two arrested last month after major crimes detectives saw activity on the agency’s bank account and linked it to a dead person’s account also being tampered with. Brain was in jail already on a separate weapons charge and parole violation.

A man from Lake County has been arrested in Ukiah after a police officer’s patrol vehicle was taken on a joy ride. Police out responding to a vehicle fire lost their vehicle Oct. 15th. They say they were working with firefighters investigating the scene and their car vanished. Someone then reported a reckless vehicle driving in circles and hitting a closed gate, heavily damaging it. A man witnesses described was eventually caught. Richard Rodriguez of Lower Lake was arrested for suspicion of vehicle theft, hit and run and committing a felony while out on bail.

A solo car crash ends with one man dead and another seriously injured in Ukiah. Police say the crash happened late Sunday night, but they found out nine hours later. 18 year old Juan Silva of Willits driving the 2006 Ford SUV and went off the road and hit a tree. He had major injuries and was arrested for DUI. He had two male passengers, both from Willits, one of them, a 19 year old, died. Another man, 20-years-old, said no to medical treatment at the scene.

A Spanish-language immersion school in Windsor cleaning up graffiti they say was anti-immigrant. The Press Democrat reports on the tagging that said, quote, "build the wall higher”. They also say there were multiple references to Donald Trump. The principal at Cali Calmecac Language Academy says a custodian found the graffiti on buildings, walls, doors, garbage can lids and other places Monday morning. The school reports about ¾’s of their more than 1,100 students are Latino.

A 7 month old baby still missing out of Sonoma County. An Amber Alert was issued yesterday for the child who disappeared out of Guerneville. The grandma reported her grandson, Henry Massey, was snatched from his crib in her home and she thinks her daughter’s responsible. The grandma has legal custody of Hannah Ashley’s infant. Mom says Ashley had threatened to take the child back during a recent visit. She was last seen in a silver 2005 Subaru Forrester with California license plate number 5JKZ255.

Voters rights advocates in California say they’re going to monitor more polling places than they have in the past this Election Day. They say it’s because of concerns of possible voter intimidation due to GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump saying this election is rigged against him. Monday’s the deadline to register to vote in the November 8th election. Besides President, there are several local and state races and 17 statewide initiatives.

Police in Maine say a man dressed as a tree’s been arrested. Police say the guy was blocking traffic and they warned him to move, but he wouldn’t listen. The man in the way of cars at a busy intersection in downtown Portland. A friend of the guy says he was studying traffic patterns.

A 16 year old in Georgia in a coma for a time, awakens, speaking only Spanish. Reuben Nsemoh’s family says the goalie for soccer kicked in the head by accident went into a coma. They say when he woke up he could only speak Spanish. His English skills came back, but his family says he only knew a little Spanish before his accident. They say it gradually went away after he awoke.

A woman’s been arrested for smearing peanut butter on a bunch of cars she thought were outside a Donald Trump rally. Cops in Amherst, WI say they’re charging the 32 year old woman with disorderly conduct after she drew phallic symbols and profanity in peanut butter on 30 vehicles outside a gathering of a conservation group meeting that had nothing to do with politics. They say the woman was a tad drunk when she went inside and started to yell about hating Trump.

Money available for the chronically homeless. State Senator Mark McGuire’s hosting a town hall meeting in Ukiah with other government officials and nonprofit leaders through the No Place Like Home Program. The program, part of a state law passed earlier this year, means as many as 14,000 housing units. Thursday’s town hall from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Ukiah Valley Conference Center.

A man from Rohnert Park accused of stealing an ambulance in Clearlake skips his court date. Police say Matthew Holmes was supposed to be arraigned last week but didn’t show. 3 hours after his court time, he showed up and pleaded not guilty. Holmes arrested last month after being found in an ambulance outside the St. Helena Hospital Clear Lake E.R. Police in Clearlake say paramedics told him to get out then waited for police to escort him out. He’s set for a jury trial November 1st.

A burn permit suspension in Lake and surrounding counties has been canceled. Cal Fire called off the suspension as of 8 a-m this morning. The Sonoma Lake Napa Unit Chief announced Lake, Sonoma, Yolo, Colusa and Solano counties could now resume burning on permissible burn days with current and valid agriculture and residential permits. The burns have to be inspected by Cal Fire before burning until peak fire season ends.

Open enrollment has started again for Obamacare and Medicare. The Office of the Patient Advocate or OPA has a report card on the best health plans and docs in the state. They say Obamacare premiums are supposed to go up next year, but a Covered Calif. spokesman says it’s still much less than it would have been before the Affordable Care Act. Anyone interested in getting insurance through the state health exchange or if you already have it, you can visit again to the Covered California website to see if there’s a better deal.

Elementary students in Lake and Mendocino county are some of the highest truancy rates in the state. A new report shows kids in Napa County are some of the lowest. The data from the yearly statewide report on elementary school truancy and chronic absenteeism. The Department of Justice’s Bureau of Children’s Justice report shows more than 200,000 K-5 students in the state, missed 10 percent of the 2015-2016 school year. It shows Lake County with the third-highest truancy rate of elementary school students with 35.6 percent. Mendocino County was at just over 31 percent. Napa County was just under 9 percent.

No more fraternity or sorority parties at UC Berkeley after reports of sex assaults against two female students last week at off-campus fraternities. The Interfraternity Council President along with the Panhellenic Council president said they’re suspending all social events so they can reevaluate risk management practices and to look after those affected. There’s been more than 60 reported sex assaults in the city the last six months.

A soldier in Oroville is fighting back after thousands of soldiers are being told they have to pay back bonuses. Sergeant First Class Bryan Strother served more than 30 years. He says he feels disregarded and disrespected after being told nine years ago at a re-enlistment seminar he could get a $15,000 bonus for continued service. But then in 2012, he was told he had to pay back $25,000. The Los Angeles Times reports bonuses handed out to several thousand soldiers that were supposed to be just for high demand assignments, went to others who didn’t qualify too.

Tens of thousands embezzled from a Northern Calif. town… The Placer County Sheriff’s office reports Laurie Sayre of Sparks, NV took 65-thousand from a business in Loomis starting in October of 2015. She was arrested last Thursday and booked into the Placer County Jail. Sayre worked for a business that has not been indentified and was connected to tens of thousands of dollars missing. Detectives now investigating if she cheated other businesses around Placer County connected to her bookkeeping business.

A local businessman in Lake County has pleaded no contest to sex assault on a former girlfriend. Lake Co News reports Richard Hamilton in court Friday on misdemeanor counts of sexual battery and false imprisonment. He got some jail time, probation and cannot go near the victim for 10 years. Police say while he visited his ex girlfriend in Lakeport, he jumped her, held her down and tried to get her clothes off, even though the woman told him to stop. She got away and Hamilton was charged with several crimes including rape by force and sexual battery. The news site reports Hamilton had been charged in 2001 with rape, but it was dismissed.

A scam being reported in Lakeport. Police say to look out for fake checks circulating so crooks can steal money. They say a phony check was sent to a resident that supposedly came from CVS. The bank reported the info from CVS on the check was accurate, but the check was a fake. Cops say the check came from a legitimate-looking survey for the drug store telling its recipient they could get $685 for depositing the check in their account, filling out a survey and submitting it. The police dept. says if you think you’ve been scammed to call them or message them on Facebook.

Police in Chico on a chase by someone they say let passengers out along the way. 20-year-old Brandon Mustagog finally arrested Saturday after he wouldn’t pull over for a routine traffic stop a day before. Police say two deputies taken down different streets as the guy ran stop signs and drove over the double yellow lines. He let a woman out and kept going. Then he stopped again and let two other people out and took off again. He was caught Saturday for felony evading a peace officer, possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia.

An cat lost in the Clayton fire has gone home… 2 months later and about 10 miles away from where it was last seen. Sharon Hewes says her cat Harley Jo was spooked by a big dog at the Moose Lodge in Clearlake Oaks where she went to escape the fire in August. She had been evacuated from Clearlake and lost her cat. She says she searched for days for the cat with no luck but it appeared again on Monday.

An old car dealership in Ukiah that was supposed to be razed with a casino put in its place, looks like it won’t happen. The Pinoleville Pomo Nation was planning the casino, but now the land’s for sale. The Daily Journal reports the tribe’s not commented on the sale. But for the last five years the tribe had a lease option on the nearly 9 acres as part of its Rancheria. The paper reports the option expired without a purchase agreement. In 2009 the tribe announced it was building a $50 million casino and hotel on the property, just outside Ukiah’s city limits and near Highway 101.

A new Sonoma County Sheriff’s deputy being investigated after a Taser was used on a resident during a domestic dispute call. The Press Democrat reports the Sheriff saying the deputy, Scott Thorne, is not working for the department any longer. He says he was gone two weeks after the Sept. 24th incident. He also says because of state law, he can’t say anything more. The paper reports Thorne was hired in April. The Sheriff wouldn’t say if he resigned or was fired after the Sonoma resident had to be treated for injuries that included bruising, swelling and welts. The Sheriff’s office says they’re not sure he even committed a crime and they’re investigating the whole incident.

Sen. Bernie Sanders says he has no position on a soda tax being proposed in Calif, so the soft drink industry needs to stop using his name in ads. A statement by the Senator says campaign commercials and mailers in San Francisco and Oakland are false. He says he’s not taken a position and he’s asked the American Beverage Association to stop using his name in the misleading advertising. Those against the soda tax had been saying Sanders opposed a soda tax, but that was in Philadelphia.

A record amount of cash spent on Calif. initiatives on the General Election ballot. New data shows political donors spending a record $450 million for and against 17 initiatives. The fundraising was up at least $12 million over the state’s previous record from 2008 when $438 million was spent on 21 measures when US Senators Barack Obama and John McCain were running for President. Some of the initiatives include, legalizing marijuana for recreational use, a proposal for a cap on what the state pays for prescription drugs to match the lowest price the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs pays; and another proposal for a $2 per pack of cigarettes tax.

The speed limit may change on some Lakeport City streets. At their meeting Tuesday the City Council introduced a new ordinance to change speed limits on five streets after an engineering and traffic study from last summer. The Record Bee reports the changes are proposed for parts of Bevins, Hartley, Martin, 20th and Parallel Drive where in most cases the speed would go up a bit, adjusting for what the traffic engineers call a higher critical speed. The reports also suggest removing the on street parking adjacent to O’Meara Brothers brewery.

Police have ID’d the suspect in Wednesday’s shooting death of a Modoc County Deputy. The sheriff’s office says Jack Lee Breiner of Alturas shot and killed Deputy Jack Hopkins who’d been sent to Breiner’s house to investigate a report of a family disturbance. The Sherriff’s Office says Hopkins was shot and killed as soon as he got to the home. Breiner was wounded in a shootout with another officer and later arrested. Hopkins is the state’s fourth law enforcement officer to die in the line of duty in the last two weeks.

A Halloween prank or real life? Cops in Sacramento say a woman was stopped after being seen with a human skull on a stick. They say she was stopped at an abandoned house and said she found it an abandoned homeless camp nearby. Officers then found the rest of a decomposing body there. An investigation will be done by the coroner to determine the identity of the remains and cause of death.

A new initiative passed in one Mississippi county to proactively rid the town of the creepy clown craze… for now. Kemper County supervisors say no to anyone wearing clown costumes, masks or makeup in public. If resident’s are caught, they face a $150 penalty. The whole thing will be lifted a day after Halloween. County supervisors say it’s a public safety matter because there could be bad reactions from folks who get scared by a clown in their yard. The American Civil Liberties Union says it’s a "ridiculous use of government authority.”

A man from Dos Rios has been sent to prison for driving drunk. Since Jesse Bourdeaux had been convicted before for gross vehicular manslaughter, he got 72 months in state prison. The CHP says Bourdeaux was driving east through Jackson State Forest on Highway 20 and lost control, crossed over the double yellow lines, and plowed into a motorcyclist, killing her. His blood alcohol was measured at .21.

A new police officer position has been funded by the state for the Lakeport agency. The dept says starting next July they’ll have a business and neighborhood police officer. It comes after the department applied to the United States Department of Justice, Community Orientated Policing Program. Matching funds of $235,000.00 by the Lakeport City Council announced at their meeting this week.

A two week delay for Mendocino County’s draft of comprehensive cannabis regulations because of some sort of miscommunication between supervisors and planning staff about zoning exemptions for marijuana grows that have already been established. Building and Planning staffers are putting out the first draft of the environmental study Nov. 14th. That takes a look at possible environmental effects of a provision added this week that would allow already existing small-scale growers to keep growing in neighborhoods where it would otherwise not be allowed.

The Ukiah City Council says no to Measure AF. The council decides to come out against the initiative on the Nov. 8th ballot to allow marijuana gardens in all zoning districts within unincorporated Mendocino County. A spokesperson for the measure says there’s a clause allowing it to be amended. It says the Board of Supervisors can make changes after June of 2018. It also shows zoning and setbacks can be discussed. The City Atty. saying he thought you could only amend an initiative in another election, but when he was shown the clause this week, he said he wasn’t prepared to give his legal opinion.

A local mainstay, stays no longer. C & K Market has announced it’s closing the Ray’s Food Place in Clearlake, and another in Brookings, Oregon. Employees in Clearlake were told Tuesday. They say they expect to close down by the end of the year. The company says it’s been evaluating its stores this past year and found a few of their locations weren’t profitable enough to support rent so they decided instead to sell their property. Negotiations reportedly began already with buyers for both locations.

One more part of the Starview and Bonanza Springs water system repair project in Lake County is moving forward. The Lake County Board of Supervisors’ accepted a bid of nearly $1.65 million to replace its distribution system in a section of the Starview District damaged by the Valley Fire. They’ve also approved installing 45 fire hydrants in both districts.

There’s less than three weeks until Election Day and the Gov. Jerry Brown and supporters are trying to defeat Proposition 53. The measure doesn’t directly go after Brown’s high speed rail and Delta tunnel projects, but could kill the deals. Brown, labor unions, Indian tribes, Silicon Valley venture capitalists and others have poured millions in to kill the measure that would require a statewide vote to push thru state projects that cost more than $2 billion and financed with revenue bonds. Brown put more than 1 and a half million from his unspent 2014 re-election campaign money to No on 53. Then donated $2.4 million last Friday.

Rescuers have found the wreckage of a small-engine plane and its pilot. The plane disappeared over the Sierra Nevada in stormy weather. Search crews then went to the wreckage in a rugged area of the Sierra and found the body of a man outside of the crash site. They say the plane was headed back to Sacramento but vanished Saturday during a storm that dumped snow and rain along with gusty winds.

A local convicted sex offender has been arrested after police say he was acting so strange, they started to watch him again. Then a 15 year old jogger says he was leering at her. She says Derrick Heater tried to talk to her in a secluded area near the North Coastal Trail. The teen ran from the area to a local Denny’s to call police. They found Heater later in the day, but they released him due to a lack of evidence. But they picked him up later after finding he hadn’t registered as a sex offender with the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office since 2013.

Police in Connecticut say someone trying to rip off a pastry shop where they sell espresso and fancy cookies. The man arrested after asking a cop for directions. Police say Donald Newman-Smith’s face was covered with a bandanna during the heist, but earlier an investigator went to a convenience store and Newman-Smith asked how to get to the pastry shop. The cop recognized him while watching surveillance footage of the robbery.